Really?
by Alexandrea-Delshay
Summary: SEQUEL to Fake. Years after their breakup, James sends Sirius a letter asking to meet him. Could old flames reignite?
1. Chapter 1

Sighing, Sirius pushed away from the desk, his chair easily rolling across the hardwood floor until the wheels caught on a throw rug. Fingers moved to wearily massage a pale forehead at the sight of his overflowing trashcan. Dozens of wadded up pieces of parchment joined several sheets of muggle paper on the floor, Sirius's latest attempts at writing another chapter for his newest novel.

Laughter sounded downstairs, slipping underneath the study's closed door and ringing in Sirius's ear until he was sure one more chuckle would cause his head to split open. His headache was back with a vengeance. A drawer was opened and a bottle removed. The strongest pain-relieving potion in Britain made its way down his throat. It would only be a temporary respite, though. The pounding would be back.

Sirius stood, walking over to the pile of unopened mail lying on a random patch of floor. He scooped them up, flipping through the envelopes.

'Bill, fan-mail, fan-mail, junk-mail.'

The next letter caught his attention. Emerald-green ink on yellowish parchment, a handwriting he had memorized from one precious year of note passing in class clearly stating his name and address. What could possibly have happened to make Professor James Potter, world-renowned Defense Master, send him a letter?

'Only one way to find out.'

Once the envelope had been tossed in the general direction of the garbage, Sirius hastily scanned the brief note.

_Sirius,_

_Unless your curiosity has drastically changed over the last few years, I'm sure you're wondering what in Merlin's name could have possibly made me write to you._

He snorted. 'I most certainly was not.'

_By now I suppose you've heard of mine and Lily's divorce. She recently told me of a conversation she supposedly had with you in our seventh year at school. I've learned not to trust anything that comes out of her mouth, but I can't help but want this to be the one time she has told me the truth._

_Could you come to Hogwarts this Saturday? Or let me come to 'The Pound'? Or possibly meet me in Hogsmeade or Diagon Ally? Please?_

_James Potter_

_P.S. If you agree, I'll be bringing Harry with me._

Sirius reread the note, slower this time. He chewed his lip, a habit he had picked up from his little brother's boyfriend, wondering if he should agree to meet James. Eventually, he picked up a spare quill and scrap of parchment, penning his response.

_James,_

_You and Harry can come here on Saturday around three._

_Sirius_

Shaking his head, Sirius began to make his way to the den, sure Regulus's owl would be perched on the mantle above the fireplace.

"Sirius!" Regulus blushed and pried his lips away from Remus's.

He smirked. "I'll just be a minute, Reg. Don't mind me. Carry on."


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to:

Lorelai Gilmore46, smittyloveshpfic, QueenNarca, Sirius04L, ladyBlue Wolf, Nika Dawson, N. Beresford, lilyseyes27 (I admit it! The whole end of Fake was because I wanted baby Harry! How could I not? lol), Tyleet27 (You'll see. Though, I doubt Voldemort is a kindegarten teacher... lol), The Most OOC Writer Around, rosemont419, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, i'm a misfit

A/N--If anyone wants to give me an approximate age you think Harry is, that would be great. lol

* * *

James sat down on his bed, suddenly scared to open the envelope before him. He had expected Sirius to just ignore his letter. Maybe he had. Maybe this was just to tell him to piss off and leave the other man alone. Could he handle that? 

Harry cooed from his spot on the floor, giggling when Hedwig, Harry's snow-white kitten, batted at another of the child's toys. James smiled, once again thanking every deity ever known to mankind for the one good thing that had come from his marriage to Lily Evans.

'Lily.'

Shaking his head at the thought of his ex-wife, James carefully opened the letter. One deep breath later and he was skimming over the brief note.

James,

You and Harry can come here on Saturday around three.

Sirius

James blinked.

'That's all he wrote?'

………'He said yes. I'm going to see him.'

Very thankful he was already sitting down, James allowed his lips to twist into a relieved grin. Sirius had agreed to meet him. It was far more than he had dared to hope for.

"What do you say, Harry? You ready to go see Sirius and Uncle Regulus?"

"Goo-lush!" Harry clapped his pudgy baby fingers together.

James laughed at his son's obvious delight at seeing one of his favorite babysitters, second only to Albus Dumbledore and even then only because of all the candy the old man kept stashed away in his office. Grimacing in memory, James bent gown to try to convince Hedwig that his shoes were not a scratching post.

"It's a good thing he doesn't mind you coming, too. Albus may enjoy spoiling you rotten, but I wasn't looking forward to coming home to a hyped-up munchkin covered with chocolate stains."

Harry looked up, wide-eyed and hopeful. "Choklat?"

"After your nap."

"No nap!"

"Then no chocolate."

James scooped up the pouting child, laying him on the huge four-poster bed dominating the majority of the room.

"Dah-dy?"

Crawling in to bed himself, James watched as Harry yawned and squirmed under the covers until only his unruly mop of hair could be seen. James gently carded his fingers through his son's hair. His eyes closed. A nap before grading the third years' essays sounded wonderful.

Hazel eyes snapped back open.

'What am I going to wear?'


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to:

Lilia Black, siriuslylovely, i'm a misfit, Chibi-Alania (a lot of Lily's evil-ness will be revealed later on, a little at a time), HyenaWolf (Just wait. You'll end up wishing she had gotten a lot more than what she did.), Cantarique Nerella (I love having baby Harry in a story. It forces me to make the other characters more mature in order to take care of him, something I needed in this piece...that and he's so darned cute! lol), MyFictionalAnnihilation (I love you too! _snuggles back _lol), Tyleet27 (I believe you may have mentioned your love of Regulus a few times lol I thought babysitter!Albus would be fun to write sometime, possibly while James and Sirius have a night to themselves, so I decided to stick that bit in there. I know what you mean, babysitters who give candy instead of health food would have been a huge hit at the daycare I attended when I was little lol)

* * *

Sirius nervously ran his fingers through his hair. He had heard the chime indicating an incoming floo nearly ten minutes ago. A child's delighted laughter echoed throughout the house, James and Regulus's conversation a dull background murmuring in comparison to the innocent giggles.

"Goo-lush play?" carried up the stairs and into the study. A faint reply and then footsteps followed, coming closer and closer. An unmistakable head of brunet hair poked through the door, scanning the room until James caught sight of him.

"James."

"Sirius."

"You…you look good."

"Thanks. S-so do you."

An awkward silence descended, wrapping around the two men like a blanket. Sirius turned to mix a drink at the mini-bar. A little bit of this, a dash of that, and voila! He turned back around and froze, barely managing to keep from snatching the book from James's hands. Hazel eyes scanned the rough summary scribbled on the outside of the muggle notebook. James swallowed thickly, eyes misting.

"You wrote about it?"

"I tried to."

James tried to smile, halfway succeeding. "Can you even remember everything we did after four years?"

Sirius gently loosened James's grip, placing the notebook back on the desk. "I remember the important parts."

"When…when we broke things off, did Lily tell you she and I were together?"

"Yes. Your plan worked just like you said it would."

"She lied. I had turned her down."

Sirius's breath caught and his heart skipped a beat. "What? Why? She was the reason we started the whole us thing."

"I wanted someone else by then."

"Well, I'm sure you could've just explained that you had another girl in mind-"

"I wanted you, Siri."

For once in his life, Sirius Black could not think of anything to say. Whether that was because of the shock or the lump in his throat, though, is anyone's guess. He watched James seemingly wilt as the silence stretched on.

"Say something, Sirius," he begged.

He couldn't, not yet. Instead, Sirius walked until he stood in front of the shorter man again. One look at James's quivering chin and tear-streaked face was all it took. Sirius wrapped his arms around James's shivering form.

"Merlin, James. I wanted you too."

He felt shaking fingers clutch his shirt. Sirius knew it was James's desperate attempt to assure himself that this was really happening, that this was real.

Sirius understood. He felt the same way.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks to:

The Most OOC Writer Around, ladyBlue Wolf, MyFictionalAnnihilation (I know what you mean. I need to be studying for my geography exam tomorrow lol), Tyleet 27, Cantarique Nerella, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, lilyseyes27 (your wish is my command lol), Sirius04L, smittyloveshpfic, rosemont419, Lila Black (I've never really liked Lily. She just gets in the way marauder slash lol), Katlyn, Shiroi-Tora78, i'm a misfit, HyenaWolf

A/N--I love writing baby Harry! lol

* * *

Harry looked up at his new babysitter. Daddy seemed to like the longhaired man and Goo-lush said Sear-us was nice, but why couldn't he stay with Gampa Albus while Daddy talked to the older kids? Daddy even had to write down what they were supposed to do today. 

Re-moose was right; Sear-us had no idea what to do with a toddler.

'…………What's a toddler?'

It took four tugs on the stupid duckies shirt before Sear-us realized he wanted another one. Daddy would have figured it out in two.

At snack time, Sear-us had given him applesauce. Gampa Albus would have given him a chocolate frog.

Seven minutes later and Harry still hadn't been given his nutrition potion. Pomfrey would have yelled at Sear-us and given Harry a sucker. Another six minutes of staring at the green bottle finally got his point across.

Lunch rolled around and Sear-us made sure Harry ate all of those nasty green things like Mommy used to.

Afterwards, Sear-us had asked what Harry wanted to do. Didn't he know it was naptime? Honestly. What was Daddy thinking, leaving him alone with this man?

"Go seep."

Sear-us made sure he brushed his teeth but didn't make him wash his hands like Goo-lush usually did.

When Harry was tucked into bed, Sear-us got up to leave the room. What about his story? Re-moose wouldn't have forgotten his story.

Sear-us came back at his small, pitiful, well-practiced whimper. Harry did his best baby version of that greasy man's smirk, quickly hiding it behind a sniffle and watery eyes.

The man picked him back up, carefully cradling him against a hard chest. This was nice. No one other than Daddy usually sat with him like this while he tried to sleep. Goo-lush and Re-moose and Gampa Albus usually went to the big room and looked at one of Daddy's books.

Harry could feel his eyes droop. He yawned, snuggling further into the embrace.

Sear-us started to sing quietly.

"Lullaby and good night, with roses bedight  
With lilies o'er spread is baby's wee bed  
Lay thee down now and rest, may thy slumber be blessed  
Lay thee down now and rest, may thy slumber be blessed

Lullaby and good night, thy father's delight  
Bright angels beside my darling abide  
They will guard thee at rest, thou shalt wake on my breast  
They will guard thee at rest, thou shalt wake on my breast"

'Maybe Daddy will let Sear-us stay with me again. Next time he can sing for me and Daddy. Daddy would like that.'

The two-year old closed his eyes, slipping into dreams of Daddy and Sear-us and singing chocolate frogs that sounded like Re-moose.

Harry still preferred to spend the day playing with Goo-lush or hunting for candy with Gampa Albus, but Sear-us was now the only babysitter he wanted to have at naptime.

'Goo-lush wouldn't have forgotten my snitch blanket, though.'


	5. Chapter 5

Wow. 70 reviews for four chapters! I'm sorry this one took so long. However, I just finished my finals for the semester so I'll probably have a lot more time to write for a good while.

Oh, and for those of you who asked Sear-us is Sirius and Goo-lush is Regulus.

Thanks to:

theferretmenace, smittyloveshpfic, MyFictionalAnnihilation, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, Masquerade Angel (no, that wasn't Sev, but you just gave me another idea! lol), Alania Black (thanks. We'll probably see more interaction between Harry and Remus and Regulus later on, after all...oops! can't say anything about that yet! lol), Tyleet27 (yes, it seems our dear Severus has had a bit of influence on cute little Harry _snicker_), Lilia Black (It'll be explained later), ladyBlue Wolf, rosemont419 (but of course! lol), The Most OOC Writer Around, maison de neener (lol Thanks), lilsteves, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, i'm a misfit, yuranda (_smooches back_ Thanks!!), LGSF (thankfully I know what kawaii means or I might have spent a few hours looking it up lol), where-my-heart-resides, cuteandklutzy (I hope my review went through. The system was acting wacky that day.), ElleloveMax85, Need Somebody to Love, The Fanatic of CatWoman, Dadaiiro, Liz Black (Yay! Another Lily hater and candy-crazy-babysitter lover!), AnimeSiren, picky and paranoid, SnufflesLuva, X'andirth, Dreams of Euphoria (thanks for taking the time to review both stories!)

* * *

James stumbled into the den, silently cursing trick steps and portraits that wouldn't let him in a room without lecturing him on how much rest they required. 

"Sorry I'm late, Sirius. Albus wanted to talk to me and then those blasted steps-" James trailed off, looking around the room. "Siri?"

The door to Harry's room opened and Sirius stepped out, the sleeping toddler clutching Siri's black t-shirt.

"I can't get him to let go," he smiled.

James smiled back, watching Harry's tiny fists clench. "Any problems?"

"Nah." Sirius sat on the couch, pulling James down beside him on the black leather. "What about you? Any trouble with that pain in the-" he glanced down at the slumbering child in his arms, changing the wording of what he was saying, "-tail third year in your Huffleclaw class?"

"Huffleclaw?"

Sirius shrugged. "You know what I mean."

"I know. Actually, they were all well behaved today. A few of them said it was because "Mr. Professor Potter's Boyfriend" threatened to let his dog loose and give them all rabies." James raised an eyebrow. "Any idea who that could be?"

"No." Sirius mock pouted, "And here I was thinking I am the only one you are dating. "Mr. Professor Potter's Boyfriend" and I need to have a little chat."

"You prat," James laughed.

"Sugarmuffin! What horrible things you call me!" Sirius leered, "You know how I love it when you talk nasty."

Harry whimpered and moved one tiny fist to his babysitter's hair. James' smile softened as he watched Sirius struggle to remove the toddler's fingers from his shoulder-length midnight tresses without waking the kid up.

"And you thought he wouldn't like you," he teased.

"Hush, you." Sirius finally managed to free his hair. "So...what took you so long getting back? All I heard was something about steps," he smirked.

James sighed and leaned against his boyfriend. 'It feels good to be able to call him that again.'

"James?"

"Albus thinks Voldemort is going to go after Neville Longbottom."

Sirius' eyebrows scrunched together. "Frank and Alice's little boy? What for?"

"Apparently a real prophecy was made about the little tyke being the only one who will be powerful enough to take down the," James looked at his dozing son, "prat."

Sirius glanced down at the child as well. "Isn't he Harry's age?"

"Yeah. Born on the very same day. For a little while I worried that Harry would be the one the prophecy spoke of."

"What changed your mind?"

"The so called Chosen One was to be born to parents who had denied Voldemort thrice. Albus said my divorcing Lily is counted as "repentance" for marrying a muggle-born and the marriage doesn't count anymore."

Sirius watched the other man yawn deeply. Gently nudging James aside, he stood up and left the room to put Harry back in his bed. He returned to the den and bent down to scoop James up in his arms bridal style.

"Siri!"

"Shhh. You'll wake the midget."

James muffled his giggles as much as he could, barely managing to keep from a laughing fit when Sirius threw him onto his bed and crawled in after him. When the last of his giggles had receded the two curled up together, Sirius with his chest to James' back. James squirmed a bit, blushing when he accidentally brushed against his boyfriend's erection. He tried to scoot away, but Sirius was having none of that and quickly pulled the man back.

"Just go to sleep, James."

He couldn't, though, and turned to face the longhaired man.

"I want to, Siri. I just...I want to do things right this time."

Sirius smiled, not his usual smirk but an actual smile, and darted in for a quick kiss.

"I know, baby. Now, go to sleep."

James did, held gently in the arms of the man he loved.


	6. Chapter 6

imakeeper, i'm a misfit, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Liz Black, HyenaWolf, MyFictionalAnnihilation, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, smittyloveshpfic (I know how you feel. My finals are killing me!), crazy-harpy-chick (I might do a few more chapters from Harry's p.o.v.), maison de neener, X'andirth, The Most OOC Writer Around (Usually when I'm hyper it's because I've taken too much Nyquil lol), rosemont419, picky and paranoid, Dreams of Euphoria (Believe me, the rebel is still there. The relationship is just "new", so he's trying not to make James too angry right now. Give him a few weeks and he'll be back to his snarky, smirking self. lol), ladyBlue Wolf, chelsea, ChemicalGunLove (thank you so much!)

This is just a little something to try to get my brain functioning again.

* * *

"OW! MERLIN'S BLOODY BALLS!" 

James tried to step past Regulus into the house. The youngest Black sibling closed the door behind him as he stepped out, effectively blocking the entrance.

"You really don't want to go in there right now." He winced as a loud crash echoed throughout the house behind him. "Trust me."

"What happened?"

Regulus blushed fiercely. "Sirius walked in my room without knocking."

"Wha-"

"SIRIUS! PUT THE VASE DOWN!"

"IF I EVER GET MY HANDS ON YOU I'LL RIP YOUR COCK OFF AND YOU CAN SPEND THE REST OF YOUR LIFE AS A GIRL!"

"Why is Remus-" James stopped, grinning when he realized what Sirius had seen when he walked into his brother's room. "I take it neither of you were expecting him to come home early."

"We thought he was going to your place."

James just smirked.

A rather feminine shriek pierced the air followed by yet another crash and several curses.

"Does he scream like that in bed?"

Regulus' blush darkened, something James had thought impossible, and he shook his head. He flicked a few stray hairs from his eyes before grinning. "Nah. He does this really hot posessive growling thing."

Another crash.

James winced and tried to decide what Sirius had just thrown.

"You'd almost think you were some small child and Remus was the devil incarnate with the way he's carrying on."

Reg rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it."

CRASH

"GET BACK HERE!"


	7. Chapter 7

Isn't it amazing that the only time writer's block can be conquered is when you should be sleeping?

As always thanks to all of you who reviewed!

Gryffin's Love, Tyleet27 (It will be party explained in this chapter. It may not be completely clear and will probably pop up later to clear it up a little, but it's a start. And you you are right. Reg is 3 years younger than Siri and only graduated a year ago, so Sirius hasn't been around him for nine months out of the year until now. He just doesn't know how to accept the fact that Regulus isn't the teenager he remembers.), living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed, The Most OOC Writer Around, ladyBlue Wolf, picky and paranoid, MyFictionalAnnihilation, smittyloveshpfic, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, crazy-harpy-chick, lostjackal, maison de neener (lol that was my fave part, too), theferretmenace, The-Lily-And-The-Stag-92, Serious Fan (thanks!)

* * *

Having a two-year-old as the only person not angry with you, Sirius decided, sucked. Royally. 

Regulus refused to speak to him until he lifted the ban he had placed on Remus's visits. James was taking Reg's side and refused to back down.

It had caught him by surprise, the disagreement between him and James. He was used to both of them tip-toeing on eggshells around each other, not really ready to test the weight of their new relationship. But the messy-haired man had refused to accept seeing Reg and Remus separated, especially when it threatened the closeness the Black brothers shared.

James had finally had enough and told him not to come back until the problem was taken care of.

Sirius sighed. He seemed to be doing that a lot the past two weeks. Had it really only been that long since he had caught the two lovers in Regulus's room? That long since he had exploded with protectiveness over his little brother? It felt as though it had been an eternity.

"Regulus?" he called, not really expecting a reply. His brother had kept his vow of silence well. "I need to talk to you."

"I'm in the dining room."

Sirius started at the hushed voice but headed towards it nonetheless. Regulus was sitting at the table, nursing what looked to be his first cup of coffee for the day. His shoulders were slumped and his hair had yet to be brushed, falling in tangled waves over his shoulders. Once bright gray-green eyes were dulled, sad and tired.

"What do you want?"

Sirius winced at the harsh tone. He almost preferred being ignored.

"I…I want to explain why I reacted the way I did."

Regulus snorted, taking another sip from his mug. "What makes you think I want to listen to your excuses?"

"Just hear me out." He took a deep breath. "When I saw you in bed with…with Remus, I didn't see you as a seventeen year old young man capable of making his own decisions."

"What did you see me as then? Some slut who decided to spread his legs for his boyfriend?"

"NO! Merlin, no!" Sirius grabbed Regulus's hand, the one not clenching the coffee mug. "I have never, _never_ thought of you as a…a slut. Or any other derogatory term, for that matter."

Reg relaxed a little. It had been his biggest fear, that his big brother was disgusted with him. "Then what was I, hmm?"

"You-" Sirius swallowed nervously, closing his eyes and smiling at the images flashing behind his eyelids, "you were the five year old who came to me when he scraped his knees in the parlor." He opened his eyes. "You were the little boy who would sneak into my room after a nightmare, the little boy who I caught trying on my clothes. I saw you crying and begging me not to go to school, to stay with you until we could both go. You were sitting in the library listening to me explaining the lesson from your Ancient Runes class. I saw you-"

He didn't have a chance to say what else he had seen. Regulus leapt from his seat, coffee long forgotten, and wrapped his arms around Sirius in a tight hug.

"When you graduated it was so easy for me to slip back into thinking of you as the kid you were that I forgot you weren't. I know you're not a little boy anymore, Regulus," he managed to choke out. "And I know I'm just your older brother, but…you are so much more to me than that. Sure, I teased you like a sibling, but I was the one you ran to, not an adult, and I put you through school and stayed with you when you were sick and tried my damnedest to protect you and make sure you had everything you wanted. As far as I am concerned you are my child, my son. You always have been. You can't really blame a parent for not wanting to let their child go, can you?"


	8. Chapter 8

Ok, I'm totally running out of ideas here. I know what I'm going to do for Lily and Voldemort, but the relationships have me stumped. Any suggestions?

A great big THANKS to:

Lunar Chasmodai, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Gryffin's Love, MyFictionalAnnihilation, Padfoot-n-Prongs92, smittyloveshpfic, Lost-in-NYC (thank you! I'm thinking of doing another chapter from Harry's p.o.v., but it wouldn't be anywhere near as sweet as the last one.), ladyBlue Wolf, picky and paranoid

* * *

"Can you watch Harry tomorrow?" 

"Sure." Sirius wrapped his arms around James's waist. "Plan on taking a relaxation day?"

James snorted. "I wish." He leaned into his boyfriend's embrace with a sigh. "I'm going to the ministry to file charges against Lily."

"Charges?"

"Child abuse and neglect."

Harry's giggles could be heard from his room. Hedwig was in a playful mood today and the toddler was taking great delight in his furry friend's extra energy.

"You never said anything about Lily-"

"Yeah, well, I didn't know."

A white fuzzball zoomed across the room, closely followed by a grinning boy.

"How did you find out?"

"You remember me telling you about Eton?"

"Your family's house elf?"

"He came to me yesterday. Said that since the divorce was final he didn't have to listen to anything 'Nasty Flower Lady' said anymore. She...she's done too much, Siri. The bitch will pay." Sirius nodded and tightened his hold on him. "Aren't you going to ask what she did?"

"You'll tell me when you're ready."

"You've been writing too many romance novels, Siri."

"Maybe," he laughed. "Won't they ask to question Harry?"

James shook his head. "Not until later. They'll have to send someone here. I don't want him out in the open any more than is absolutely necessary."

Neither said anything, not wanting to think of the war going on outside of their homes. James sighed at the feel of Sirius's stubble scratching across his neck when the man shifted slightly.

"I really need to shave."

"Mmm. I like it."

Sirius smirked, purposefully nuzzling the his way down James neck to his shoulders. James couldn't have stopped the small moan that escaped his parted lips even if he had wanted to.

The kitten and child shot across the room again.

"Tease."


	9. Chapter 9

Okay, so it's been a while...hehehe...oops?

Thanks goes out to:

crazy-harpy-chick, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed (I know what you mean. I love Siri and I love a bit of stubble so Siri with stubble is definately a winner.), chelsea, Karlz4 (for some reason a bunch of reviews for chapter 7 weren't showing up and I didn't get to say thanks. So...double thanks!!!), Prongs925, crystal-unicorn (I loved "Re-moose" too. _smile_), Wasserfall, Queen Goagirl Zeppelin (You have to of my fave bands names in your penname. lol), xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, Hubert111, MyLittleFerret (I LOVE YOUR PENNAME!!!!!!!!), SiriusRulez, Sarah (Oh, there will definately be an adult scene...or twenty.), Padfoot-n-Prongs92, picky and paranoid, black lilyrose, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Lunar Chasmodai (Yes we shall! _high fives_), fluffys-sidekick, Siriusly Prongs, sncaggie, Angelique Sakuja, samgurlalways, loonymoonyy, cHoCoLaTe-cHiHuAhUa, libra4eva, faxnessrocks, Kingyforaday, Aillie

Right, that should take care of everyone ffrom the last chapter's reviews and the ones that didn't get mentioned from chapter 7.

* * *

Taking one last deep breath, James Potter strolled through the door to the Ministry of Magic's Department of Criminal Investigations. Eton the house elf followed Master James, ready to tell all he had seen and make the evil flower lady pay for what she did to poor Master Harry. 

"James! In here."

As soon as the door closed behind them, James was being interrogated.

"Are you okay? Where's Harry? Is he okay? Are either of you ill? Where are you staying? You're more than welcome to stay with Alice and me." Auror Frank Longbottom was usually a calm man, but the fire-call from his old friend a few days ago had had him in a near panic.

"I'm as good as I can be, Frank. Harry's fine now. We're all in good health and we're staying at Hogwarts, you know that. Did I miss anything?"

"Where is Harry?"

"With Sirius."

"Sirius...Black? That Sirius? The cheating bastard Sirius?"

James sighed. "Yes, that Sirius."

"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!"

"Frank, it's a long story and I don't think I can go through two in one day."

"I-"

"Please, Frank."

Frank huffed. "Fine. But I _will_ get some answers."

"How are Alice and Neville?"

"No changing the subject."

"Right."

Silence reigned.

James grinned. "Are we going over the case anytime today?"

"Right, right. The case. Now, are we going to use Veritaserum or a pensieve?"

"Which do you prefer, Elton?"

The house elf looked away from the horrid pile of dust in the far left corner. You wouldn't see anything like that at Potter Manor.

"Either, Master James."

Frank nodded. "Perhaps, if you don't mind, we could use both. Double the proof, so to speak."

Elton straightened his shoulders. He was ready for the evil ex-Mistress to finally pay for her sins.

* * *

I bet you thought you'd get to know what Lily did. Sorry, I'm going to torture you for a while longer. 


	10. Chapter 10

Next chapter...LEMON!!!! WOOHOO!!!!

* * *

James was tired, physically and emotionally. The hours spent in Frank's office kept repeating in his head. All he wanted was to surl up next to Sirius and sleep until the trial. Maybe Minerva would grade the sixth year's homework. 

Sighing, he finally finished climbing the last flight of stairs leading to his room. Hopefully Albus hadn't dropped by and given Harry too much candy. The old coot was always more than happy to give the boy enough to keep him hyper for days on end.

The portrait guarding his rooms asked for the password. Rolling his eyes, James grinned.

"Seriously, I'm Sirius."

"Really, dearie, that password is enough to give someone a headache."

James laughed. "I know."

* * *

"Sirius!"

"What?"

James spun around, glaring at the entrance. "Where have you been? Where's Harry?"

"Calm down. I just got back from Albus's office. Harry's spending the night with him." Strong arms wrapped around James's waist. "Just calm down."

James sighed (he seemed to be doing that a lot lately) and leaned into his boyfriend. "Sorry." He nuzzled Sirius's neck, practically purring when lips pressed against his forehead.

"There should be some food on the table. Did you eat anything today?"

"No."

"Hungry?"

"No."

"You're impossible."

"Occasionally."

Sirius laughed and scooped the other man up in his arms. He headed towards James's bedroom, ready to toss the man into bed. James apparently had his own plans. He wriggled free and opened his closet, rooting around until he found what he was looking for. Taking a deep breath, he turned around and walked back to the bed, carefully placing the lube on the side table.

"Siri?"

Sirius moved to stand beside him, managing to croak out a husky "Yes?"

"Love me?"

Lips brushed against each other softly, slowly.

"Always."


	11. Chapter 11

Alright, I've never actually written romantic smut before. It's always been the rough and rumble kind. Try not to be too disappointed.

Thank to:

loonymoonyy, IceTouch, xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, smittyloveshpfic (mmm, popcorn. _drools_ Yeah, James is definately ready.), SiriusRulez

* * *

James laid back on the bed, Sirius' muscular form covering his. Lips parted and fingers intwined. Tongues dueled, massaged and teased. Nothing could compare to the feelings coursing through their veins. Their clothes were quickly tossed across the room; a shirt here, a sock there. 

Sirius broke the kiss, panting. He pressed his forehead against his lover's, desperately trying to catch his breath.

"James."

Half-masted eyelids opened to reveal the most beautiful pair of eyes the gods had ever gifted to any mortal. Green clashed with brown as the hazel-eyed man's arousal grew.

"Ready?"

"Merlin yes, Siri."

Long, calloused fingers circled James's entrance, drawing a moan from both men. Sirius tossed the lube back onto the bedside table and devoted his full attention to his lover.

Carefully, he pushed one finger into the other man. James sighed and spread his legs farther apart. It had been entirely too long since his felt Sirius inside him. The stretch of another finger being added burned so sweetly and then, when it had begun to dull, another was added. They danced inside him, twisting and curving and thrusting.

"You ok?"

James moaned and pushed back against the fingers, his back arching when they ran across his prostate.

Sirius smirked. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Please, Siri. Pleasepleasepleaseplease."

"Shhh, love. Just a bit more."

Slowly, Sirius began to pull his fingers out. James whined and his lover bent over to kiss him in apology. Using the last bit of the lube in his hand, Sirius coated his cock and pressed against James's opening.

James's eyes flew open, his head tossed back and face flushed.

The first and last inch or so were always the hardest to handle. Finally, the head of Sirius's erection made it through the tight ring of muscle and he was free to slide home.

When he was sure he wouldn't come yet, Sirius kissed and nuzzled his way up James's neck.

"You-"

"If you ask me if I'm ok I'm going to hurt you." Husky chuckles filled the air. "Please, Siri. Move."

Gentle hands moved James's legs around his lover's waist. Sirius propped himself up on his forearms and pulled his cock out slightly before pushing back in. When James only whimpered and asked for more Sirius did it again, pulling out a little more before pushing in a little harder.

They quickly established their rhythm, quick but not hurried, slow but not lazily. Sirius moved his hips just the tiniest bit to the left, deftly finding James's sweetest spot. The other man moaned louder, his hands desperately clinging to Sirius's back. When Sirius brushed over that spot again, harder this time, James's fingers moved to the other man's ass to tease along his entrance.

Sirius moaned at the feel of exploring fingers. He tilted his head, going in for another kiss. James's erection became trapped between their bodies, enjoying the slide against Sirius's abs.

"I'm-Siriiii-"

"That's right, love. Come for me."

James gave in to his lover's demands, spilling himself on their chests.

Sirius grunted when James clenched around him and thrust once, twice, thrice more before he came as well.

Gently pulling out, Sirius was careful not to collapse on top of James, instead landing on the man's right.

James sighed contentedly, snuggling against Sirius. He laid his head on his lover's chest, listening to the slowing heartbeat.

"I love you."

"Mmm. Love you, too."

* * *

_Hides _Was it bad? 


	12. Chapter 12

Ready to hate Lily? This is only going to be a little bit of what she will do/has done. I actually wrote this chappie because of Liz Black. If not for her you might have had to wait for another week or two. You should thank her. _bg_

Thanks goes out to:

lovemeforever, smittyloveshpfic (lol Thanks. That really was my first piece of romantic smut. Maybe next time it will be something a bit more my writing style. Something...rougher. With kink. _g_), Karlz4, rosemont419, SiriusRulez, Lost-in-NYC (_blushes_), xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx (Good. In a lot of my smut it's just sex sex sex. I had a hard time trying to make sure their emotions got across enough for me to be satisfied with the chapter. lol), picky and paranoid, living-is-easy-with-eyes-closed (Yay! No dodging tomatoes for me! _snicker_), loonymoonyy, Serious Fan, and finally, Liz Black (This chapter is dedicated to you. I'll see what I can do about a cliff. _bg_ And I think I'm going to start making Lily-bashing shirts, too. Hmm, where to start.)

* * *

Three days after their night alone together Sirius was back in James's bed, though they were far too exhausted to do much of anything. The weekend had finally arrived and both men reveled in the peace and quiet. Harry was napping in his room, Hedwig bouncing around the kitchen, someone was walking down the hall. 

Wait, Sirius frowned, that wasn't right. The only other people that knew the password to James's quarters were Albus, Remus, and Regulus. Reg and Remus wouldn't be back from the muggle cinema until a little after ten and Albus always asked the guardian portrait to tell them he had come to visit. Of course, it could have been one of the elves, but no self-respecting house-elf would make that much noise.

Carefully extracting himself from a slumbering boyfriend, Sirius slipped silently (A/N: Say that one really fast a few times. lol) from the bedroom, grabbing his wand on the way out. The footsteps paused and then he could hear a door opening. Harry's door.

A white flash of fur raced past Sirius and not even ten seconds later Hedwig was inside her boy's room, hissing and trying her best to be intimidating.

"Stupid cat. I should have drowned you when James brought you home."

'Lily!'

Hedwig came sailing out of the room and, with a disgusting crunch, slammed into a wall. Blood pooled around her and she didn't move.

Sirius was angrier than he had ever been. He tried to barge into the room, only to discover the wench had put up wards to keep anyone from making their way down the last half of the hall.

A sleepy "Mommy?" and Sirius felt his blood run cold.

"And you, you little brat. You should've known what would happen when you opened your big mouth."

James was suddenly at his side and they were both desperately trying to tear through the warding.

The sharp sound of a palm hitting skin echoed along with Harry's terrified sobbing. Both sounds continued, the former growing louder, the latter becoming nothing more than strangled sobs.

Finally, FINALLY, James tore down the last ward and they were able to run into Harry's room. Immediately rushing to his son, James left Sirius to deal with Lily.

And deal with her he would.

A simple banishing charm would have worked, or even a body-bind, but Sirius was far too angry to consider something as simple as that. As soon as he had her unable to scream in the living room, curses his mother had used on him flew from his lips. A curse to rip out her hair and one to rot her teeth. Her skin turned red from an overdone tanning charm and Lily struggled as a charm (usually involved in much more pleasurable activities) began to rain what felt like millions of smacks along her burned body. None of it was actually illegal, and Sirius desperately yearned to cast something much more gruesome. Maybe the charm that ripped off large chunks of skin followed by something that caused internal bleeding?

"Sirius, that's enough, child."

Wrinkled hands carefully took the wand from Sirius's hand. Albus had enough sense to stand in front of him afterwards, knowing all too well that the man was likely to physically attack the la...monster curled up on the floor.

"The aurors are on their way, Sirius. Let them handle it from here."

He nodded, shakily, and ran back to Harry's room. James sat on the toddler's bed, clutching his son desperately to his chest. Sirius watched them rocking for a bref moment before joining them, wrapping his arms around them both.

"Hedwig?" Harry called. "Here girl."

Sirius choked back a sob of his own. "Harry, Hedwig got thrown against the wall really hard. She-"

"Mrow."

Staring in disbelief, James and Sirius both watched as a red stained kitten crawled into Harry's lap.

* * *

You all _knew_ I couldn't kill off Hedwig. 


	13. Chapter 13

Well, you'll all be happy to know that I have the next two chapters outlined and ready to get to work on. One of them is for all of you who mentioned how much you loved the Reg/Rem and wanted more. They have a whole chappie just for them.

And I'm pretty sure I know who I'm going to end up killing. _eg_

Thanks to:

SiriusRulez, smittyloveshpfic, Serious Fan (before Iwrote it, after I wrote it...at two in the morning when I couldn't sleep lol), xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, Liz Black (_joins in on the dancing_ I think I'm going to make one that has a hit list. At number one, of course, will be Lily Evans. _g_), picky and paranoid, X'andirth, Lady Halaia (Hmm. Now that you mention it, most of the fics I read are redhead bashing, too. _g_), Dark Angel's Blue Fire, and ladyBlue Wolf

* * *

James sat in the den, waiting for Poppy to send some salve for Harry's bruises. The man had refused to stay in Hogwarts while that...that THING was still there. True, she would only be in the school until the aurors arrived, but his rooms were tainted now. James would never be able to sleep in them again and he didn't think his son would either. So, Sirius had quickly offered to let them stay at The Pound and the two Potter's were moved in a few hours later. 

Sirius stood in the doorway, watching father and son cuddle on his couch. He would have to set up one of the guestrooms as a playroom for Harry, and maybe he could turn the backyard into a makeshift kiddie quidditch pitch. The gnomes would have to go, of course. Groceries needed to be bought and the stairs needed to be baby...err, toddler proofed, and-

Warm arms wrapped around his waist and he reciprocated. "Siri, stop thinking so much. You'll hurt yourself."

Sirius playfully glared and squeezed James's bum--hard.

"Ow!"

"James? Sirius? I thought you were staying at Hogwarts tonight." Regulus pulled off his coat, passing it to his boyfriend who obligingly placed it on the rack.

The oldest Potter smirked. Regulus had his puppy trained very well. Reg caught his eye and winked, knowing what James was thinking. Both men laughed.

The Black brothers stopped their retelling of the night's events, instead trying to find out why their lovers were in the midst of a giggle-fest.

Remus smiled. "I believe they may have lost what few marbles they had, Mr. Black."

"I quite agree, Mr. Lupin," Sirius laughed. "Giggling at nothing is never a good indicator of a large stack of marbles."

James sagged against Sirius as his laughter subsided. He turned around and buried his face in the man's baggy t-shirt, trying to hide his yawn.

"Why don't the two of you head on up to bed. Reg and I will wait for Poppy."

Nodding, Sirius picked James up and carried him towards the stairs. "Will one of you get Harry? I can't carry them both."

"Way ahead of you, bro."

* * *

"So that's why they were waiting on Madame Pomfrey." Regulus cuddled closer to Remus. "May Merlin curse Lily Evans' grave." 

"I-"

The fire turned green for a moment and out stepped Severus Snape. Disgusted, he charmed off the soot that clung to his clothes from the floo network.

"Sev!"

Suddenly finding himself with Regulus Black attached to him was a rather recurring one time thing, as it had been since the younger was just a second year with too much energy and a case of hero-worship.

"How many times must I tell you that throwing yourself at me will not be beneficial to your health?"

Regulus smiled. "You wouldn't hurt me, you git."

Severus rolled his eyes. "That remains to be seen." Reaching into his robe pocket, Sev pulled out a green vile. "Poppy sent this. She would have delivered it herself but some idiotic brat decided to brew potions by himself."

"Like you used to do?" Reg laughed.

"No. _I_ knew what I was doing. Hopefully the burns will manage to knock something resembling sense into that thick skull of his."

"Gryffindor?"

Severus smirked. "Gryffindor."

"Hello! Gryffindor sitting right here!"


	14. Chapter 14

freakin' Merlin's pre-pubescent nut sac! I forgot that tonight is RUSH for the sororities. And since there's one upstairs...I'll never get any sleep!!!!!!!!!!

This story is now on 100 alerts. I never thought 100 people would read this thing. I feel all warm and tingly. _g_

Thanks to:

smittyloveshpfic (Their chapter is next. Hopefully I'll have it out in the next few hours.), Nika Dawson (again? Wow. _I _haven't even read half the chapters again since I wrote them. hehe Yeah, I'm definately not a big Lily fan.)

* * *

James tried his damnedest to block out the whispering witnesses in the courtroom. He didn't even _know_ half of them. The only familiar faces he could see were Frank, Remus and Regulus, Albus, and Sirius. Harry was back at Hogwarts under the watchful eyes of Minerva McGonagall. There was no way in hell James would let his son sit through a public viewing of the boy's torment. He didn't need to relive his mother's hatred.

Elton's pensieve had just been placed back on the dias at the front of the room after an hour break for lunch, though no one seemed to eat. At Amelia Bones' signal, a spell was cast to allow the pensieve to act like a muggle film projector.

_Elton had just finished cleaning the kitchen after dinner and was off to  
check on the young Master Harry before turning in for the night._

_"You vile creature!"_

_Painful slurs echoed through the hallways as Elton popped into Master Harry's  
room. Mistress Lily had been in a foul mood all day and the elf had been afraid  
she would take it out on her son. The evil flower lady then did something she had  
never done before. Picking up the sobbing 3-month-old baby, she struck out against  
him. When the child only cried harder she tried again, a little harder._

_Elton tried to wrestle the child away from the nasty thing, but she  
only smirked._

_"If you want him so much, catch him."_

_With that, she threw across the room young Master Harry as hard as she could._

_Elton did catch him, but only barely. Being a house elf came in handy  
sometimes, especially when you needed to apparate somewhere  
where there were wards to stop the wizard kind._

_"Make sure the little bastard is kept quiet. And you had better keep quiet about  
this too, elf, or you may find your precious little master's remains in the fireplace."_

_Lily left the child's bedroom._

"Stop!" Madame Bones cried out over the memory Elton's shaky lullaby. "I believe we have seen enough. Bring out Ms. Evans."

* * *

Lily's eyes turned blank as the Veritaserum began to take control and Madame Bones began the questioning. 

"What is your name?"

"Lily Marie Evans."

"What is today's date?"

"March 19, 1982."

Amelia nodded. The potion worked as it was supposed to.

"Have you ever hit your son, one Harold James Potter?"

"Yes."

The room broke into murmers and James rolled his eyes skyward. It shouldn't have come as a shock to anyone after what they had seen. Maybe they had switched audiences with another courtroom? It would explain why they were so shocked at Lily's answer.

"What was the earliest age you hit your son?"

"Three months."

Amelia leaned forward in her seat. "Why did you abuse your son, Ms. Evans?"

"The little bastard deserved it."

"What could he have possibly done that was so horrible?"

"He was born."

'Oh,' James though somewhat hysterically, 'now they decide to be quiet.'

* * *

Madame Bones stood and the members of the Wizengamot followed suit.

"Child abuse has long been considered by the Wizarding World as the most horrendous crime someone could commit. Children are precious and should be treated as such. Lily Evans, you are hereby sentenced to 25 years in Azkaban Prison. The court is adjourned."


	15. Chapter 15

Isn't it funny how a few hours can turn into a few weeks. hehehe _sweatdrop _Anyway, I hope to be able to update quite a bit once my midterms are over. They ended up being stretched over three weeks! It's insane!

Thanks to:

smittyloveshpfic, loonymoonyy, Nika Dawson, X'andirth, xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, SiriusRulez, Karlz4, ladyBlue Wolf, picky and paranoid (I had actually considered having her diagnosed with ppd...but I hate her, so she suffers. lol), Lady K. Malfoy, SweetSouthernGal (I guess I have too short of an attention span to write anything longer. lol), magicaltears

* * *

Regulus relaxed further into the mound of pillows Remus kept on his bed. The older man had gone to the bathroom, presumably for a washcloth. Dried semen was a bitch to clean. 

Stretching a bit more, the youngest Black brother waited for his back to pop. Almost...almost...

-pounce-

"AHH!"

Regulus fell off the bed, Remus on top of him.

"Do you have any idea how tempting you look while you're doing that?" Remus growled.

"Rem! That hurt."

The werewolf grinned, pressing down until his lover moaned. "Don't worry. I'll make it all better."

* * *

Remus watched his lover sleep, smiling softly. He carefully reached over the slumbering Regulus to the bedside table. The third drawer down opened without so much as a squeak, thankfully. 

"Remus, be still. Good pillows don't move."

A chuckled "Sorry love" before Reg felt the cool slide of metal against his skin. Opening his eyes, he stared at the beautiful platinum ring now gracing his left hand.

"Rem?"

"Marry me?"

Regulus tangled his fingers in his lover's...fiance's hair. "Do you even need to ask?"

* * *

James watched Sirius pace around the room, waiting for the excited floo call he expected from his little brother.

"I never should have given him permission to propose."

James snorted. "Like you could have stopped him."

The call wouldn't come until a good three hours after Remus proposed.


	16. Chapter 16

Ok, I think I've figured out the first character that's going to die. No, it's not in this chapter. You'll have to wait. lol This chapter is going to mostly center around the Regulus/Severus friendship you guys got a glimpse of in an earlier chapter.

* * *

"You were my first choice, Sev. If it wouldn't make the Dark Twat suspicious you would have been my best man."

Severus Snape passed his guest (and only true friend) another glass of scotch. "I suppose your brother is giving you away."

Reg smiled. "Yeah. And James is going to stand as Remus' best man." He took a sip of his drink. "I wish you could be there."

"Have you decided on a date yet?"

"Mmhmm. Three weeks from Friday."

The older man's eyebrows arched. "That soon?"

"Yep."

"Yes," Severus corrected.

"Yeppers."

Snape rolled his eyes. "I'm going to need another drink."

Laughing, Regulus threw an arm around the back of the sofa and, consequently, Severus. The two chatted for a while longer, taking the occasional drink (Severus more so than Regulus). A clock on the mantel above the fireplace caught their attention when it struck seven.

"Well, that's my que."

"Yes. It's best not to keep your puppy waiting."

Playfully swatting at Sev, Reg dashed in for a quick hug before heading to the door.

"Remember-"

"I know, I know. The purple dog collar really doesn't go well with Remus' skin complexion."

Severus turned a little green. "That...was not what I was going to say."

"I know." Regulus grinned. "Bye, Sev."

He waited until Reg was gone before he tossed back what was left in his glass. Tonight he was going to get completely smashed, damn his classes tomorrow.

And damn Remus Lupin, too.


	17. Chapter 17

Ok, I almost cried while writing this. Just a warning. _grin_

Thanks to:

loonymoonyy, SiriusRulez

_

* * *

_

The three weeks until the wedding passed in a blur. Everyone was busy with last minute preparations. The ceremony would start in a few minutes at a small clearing next to a river on a hillside covered with roses (curtesy of Sirius), every romantic's dream come true.

Remus stared, amazed, as Regulus took his place beside him. The younger smiled, so breathtakingly beautiful that Remus was sure his heart had stopped. Neither paid attention to the ceremony, too caught up in each other. An exchange of vows and a tender kiss later they were pronounced married. The guests stood up and cheered, clapping and whisteling even harder when the couple dove in for another, longer kiss.

The cheering almost drowned out the loud crack of apparition. It could not, however, overpower the screaming of one Severus Snape as he made his way to the grooms.

"You have to get out of here. The Dark-"

The warning was too late. Dozens of robed figures arrived in a deafening concert of cracks. The few guests there grabbed their childeren and apparated away (James handing Harry to Alice Longbottom), several just barely escaping the Death Eaters' curses. Only six stayed behind: James, Sirius, Remus, Regulus, Frank and Severus (who, along with Remus and Sirius, was desperately trying to get Regulus to leave). At two to one the odds were definately not in their favor.

Mad laughter, female...Bellatrix. Naturally the two beside her would be Rabastian and Rudolphus.

That high and mighty posture, the snake-head cane...Lucius.

A large axe, the sharp edge glittering in the light of the setting sun...McNair.

The other Death Eaters were less worrisome, probably the newest batch of recruits.

"Well well well. I always knew you would pick that blood-traitor over us, Severus. It's really rather...pathetic."

"Bite your tongue, Lucius." Sev shot back, "We all know how many muggleborns and blood-traitors fill your bed in any given week."

With that the fight began.

* * *

The fledgeling Munchers (as Sirius called them) were easy enough to overpower, and dear cousin Bella ran when only the Lestranges and Malfoy were left (though Lucius was quick to follow). It seemed they had managed to get by with minimal injuries, a burn here and a cut there. 

That is, until Lucius decided to fire off a gift for the grooms.

Regulus couldn't move, frozen in fear as the deathly green curse closed in on him. Remus was running towards him, but he would never make it in time. He closed his eyes, resigned to die on his wedding day.

Everything went quiet. Was that it? No tunnels or white lights or angels?

"Reg."

And then Remus was holding him, shaking and crying and so...

'Wait! Remus wasn't supposed to die too!'

Cracking open his eyes, Regulus watched in disbelief as Sirius knelt over Severus, thanking the Slytherin for saving his brother, closing those obsidion eyes--forever.

"SEV!!!"

* * *

Ok, I'm an avid Severus Snape fan and this  
damn near killed _me_. Please, please don't hurt  
me! _hides from all the Sev fans_


	18. Chapter 18

Well, I've finally updated. And it only took two months this time! _sees the readers are not impressed_ Hehehe...sorry?

Thanks to:

SiriusRulez, MagicalTears, Nika Dawson, Queen Zeppelin, smittyloveshpfic (lol Sorry.), Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Lady K. Malfoy, xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, picky and paranoid, lady potter7447 (Thanks for pointing out the rating. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Yeah, I got most of my friends to call him Sev. lol), uknown, Marauder Nut, Ore no Naruto, Karlz4, Giuli Miadi Black, Cloudface, faxnessrocks, ladyBlue Wolf, Seamusismyhunny (Wow. Thank you so much! This story is far from finished, I just have an...err...unpredictable update schedule.), SOphia.weasley (I've converted another puppyshipper!!! Muahahahahaha!!! lol An hour? Seriously?), LoveNOThate, X.RazorbladeKiss.X (OG, I can't even begin to count all the times I've woken my parents up with a sqee or a sob. And you're the only one who mentioned Sev being jealous. Ding ding ding! We have a winner!)

* * *

Here lies Severus Snape. 

Regulus ran his fingers over the words. His best friend was dead. There would be no more nights going over the latest potions they were working on, no more practice duels to keep them sharp, no more late night visits just because. It was all over.

His eyes tried to water, but Regulus had cried too much already. No more tears would come, leaving him with no out for the horrible emptiness Sev had left.

The funeral had only ended an hour ago. It hadn't been anything big, Sev wouldn't have wanted that. There were, instead, a handful of people who stood up to say somthing about the man.

Dumbledore spoke of a man who was braver than most, daily risking his life to protect others. Regulus knew better. Sev was looking for redemption, not to become a hero.

McGonagall spoke, telling the world that Severus had been a good man and how much the world would miss him, but she was wrong. Severus was a _great_ man.

When it came time for him to speak, Regulus stood there, staring at the wooden box his friend, his Sev, would be buried in. It was unfair, and he told them so. Sev was supposed to go on and become the greatest potions master of his time, cure lycanthropy and cancer, be godfather to his and Remus' children should they ever adopt. He was going to be there when Regulus found his first grey hair or patch of wrinkles, maybe crow's feet that he would blame on Sev for making him smile so damn much. The world wouldn't miss Severus Snape, he told the gathered crowd, because the world never knew him. They would never know the treasure forever lost to them, never know the man who was being laid to rest.

Never know the idiot who loved him, even when he knew the affection was not returned.


	19. Chapter 19

Alright, a few announcements before we get down to business.

My Bill/Charlie story, "I Don't Love Him, Do I?" will be finished, just not by me. Terence has, with my full approval (and possibly a few dozen batches of cookies), adopted the story. A round of applause for him, please.

And did you know I'm having an Honors course on Harry Potter this semseter? How awesome is that?

* * *

Thanks to:

SiriusRulez, magicaltears, Sundance234, xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Giuli Miadi Black, Terence (You managed to point out just about all of my fave things! And I know what you mean. Sirius is just..._sigh_ amazing. No author has ever gotten me to hate him for even the shortest amount of time. Lily, thoug...well, I suppose you can tell that I don't particularly care for her. lol), picky and paranoid

* * *

Sirius collapsed onto the sofa, rubbing his eyes. Regulus was taking Snape's death hard, though the squirt tried to hide it. 

James was upstairs getting Harry ready for bed. The tyke had helped Reg so much in the last few weeks, the way only a child could. While it would be a long time before he stopped blaming himself for his best friend's death, with Remus' help he was slowly coming to terms with it.

Warm arms wrapped themselves around Sirius' shoulders. "Tired?"

"Exhausted."

James pressed his lips gently against his lover's temple. "Come on. It's time for all sane people to be in bed."

"I suppose you're going to be up a while longer then."

"Prat!"

"Ow!" Sirius rubbed his arm. "That's going to bruise!"

"Poor baby." James laughed at Sirius' glare. "Up."

"Sorry, I don't get off on this sort of thing."

Rolling his eyes, James managed to get Sirius to stand and pushed him towards the stairs. They stopped to make sure Harry was asleep before making their way to bed.

Neither bothered with nightclothes, instead stripping down to their boxers and crawling in the bed with a sigh. James curled up against Sirius, nuzzling against the other man when his arms wrapped around him, one reaching up to run a hand through his unruly mop of hair.

"James?"

"Yeah?"

"If something like that ever happens again, take Harry and leave."

James propped himself up on his and studied the man before him.

"No promises if there's someone else who could get him away, Siri. I don't think I could leave you."

"But-"

James smiled. "Ex-Auror, love. I can take care of myself."

"I'll shove a portkey in your hand if I have to."

James laid back down, Sirius immediately returning to his petting. Neither got much sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

Has it really been three months? _shakes head_ Man, school is really sucking the life out of me.

Speaking of school, I'm doing a paper on HP fanfiction and its community. If you feel like filling out a short survey and helping me out, please say so in your review if you leave one and I'll e-mail it to you.

Thanks to:

xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, LoveNOThate, magicaltears, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, SiriusRulez, picky and paranoid, Nika Dawson, Sundance234, Siriusly Megara, ladyBlue Wolf, RL4SBnotNT (I hadn't even thought of Peter. _smacks head_ I'll see about squeezing him in here somewhere. By the way, I LOVE YOUR PENNAME!!), Caciquegoddess (If I hadn't re-read your review a minute ago this chapter wouldn't have been written.), fallenfromgrace17 (Yes!! I've managed to convert another person to LilyHating! lol), brisingr-wen, XxMysticMariexX, I-Love-Trunks1 (Trunks as in DBZ Trunks? Cause..._drools_)

* * *

Sirius rubbed his eyes, trying to come up with some idea that would keep his latest book from taking a depressing turn. If he wrote what the plotbunny from hell wanted then his career as a romance novelist would be over. Maybe he could write it under another penname? Maybe Rigel Grey? No, better go with something other than a color for a last name. It would be too easy to connect the two. Whittaker, maybe?

A notebook in the corner of the room caught his eye. There was nothing special about it, nothing that would call attention to itself if one did not know what was in it. However, that one notebook held the most important story Sirius had ever written, his story, his and James'.

Maybe he should...

Yes. That's what he would do.

* * *

James sat Harry down with Hedwig in the playroom he and Sirius had fixed for the toddler. He watched them playing for a minute, making sure Harry was too busy with the kitten to...interrupt...what he had planned.

Smiling, James made his way to Sirius' library.

"Siri?"

Sirius was at his desk, writing something so fast James wondered if it would be legible. James waited, knowing not to disturb the man when he was absorbed in his writing. The last time he had broken Sirius' concentration James had gotten a spanking.

Maybe he should interrupt him after all.

* * *

Sirius collapsed beside his lover, his James. He had no idea what had James so horny today, but whatever it was he was going to thank it, several times…as soon as he caught his breath.

Pulling the sheets over them, Sirius wrapped his arms around an extremely cuddly James, one hand sliding through the man's mop of unruly hair. James sighed contentedly, drifting in and out of sleep.

"Siri?"

"Mmm?"

"What were you writing?"

Sirius pulled James closer, dropping a kiss on his forehead. "Nothing you haven't heard already, love."

As James fell into the deep slumber of the thoroughly satisfied, Sirius thought back to where he had left off in the notebook.

_And, though I thought nothing would ever come close to holding my fake boyfriend  
late at night, I found the peace and joy of holding my James as he slept._


	21. Chapter 21

Alright, the next chapter is served!

Thanks to:

I-Love-Trunks1 (He's so beautiful! Of course, it really depends on which Trunks you're talking about. Future or Chibi. Future is all mine. Chibi belongs with Goten._ nod nod_ I think I need to catch up on some DBZ fanfiction now. lol)

* * *

James stayed standing as still as he could in front of the class. It was the last lesson of the day, the third year Huffleclaws, as Sirius liked to call them. While they had behaved much better since Sirius threatened to seek his non-existent dog on them if they misbehaved, James had no intentions of giving them something to tease him about, especially something as personal as his (very active) sex life.

It's a sad day indeed when the Huffleclaws were scarier than the 7th year Slytherin Gryffindor class.

James didn't even have to dismiss the class, as soon as Melissa Keystone's watch showed half past three there was a mass exodus from the room. Thank Merlin. James really didn't know how much longer he could have held up under their scrutiny.

Sighing, James carefully walked to the Headmaster's office, ready to floo home to his family. Merlin! How he hated Mondays!

* * *

Tuesday was only a bit better than the day before. Sirius' stubble had left light scratches that, when they rubbed against his clothes, tingled and burned in just the right way. James had to teach all of his classes from behind his desk, desperately hoping no one would notice the erection he was sporting.

* * *

Wednesday...was horrible. Sirius hadn't come to bed the until the early hours of the morning, too caught up in trying to finish the next chapter of his book before the deadline. James, having become accustomed to a certain amount of...well, sex, was rather frustrated. Hopefully, the chapters would be finished by the time he got home.

And even if they weren't, Sirius was going to take a break, even if James had to ride him in the overstuffed library chair.

* * *

Thursday found James Potter in the teachers' bathroom, cock in hand. He had to bite his lip to keep from letting loose all sorts of nosies that he had no intention of anyone overhearing.

Sirius, thankfully, only had half of a chapter left to write and more than enough time to write it before classes ended.

One quick ride...okay, two not so quick ones...really didn't cut it. Remus had promised to babysit tonight and James was going to put the time alone with Sirius to good use.

A choked "Sirius" and James came.

Two more hours, that's all. Two hours.

* * *

Friday afternoon had finally come and James couldn't have been happier. His legs ached even though he had sat in his chair in the front of the classroom all day. No matter what Sirius said, they would not be using that position on a weeknight ever again.

Weekends were a totally different matter.


	22. Chapter 22 Sev's Will Be Done

Ok, I know it has been a quite a while since I've updated, but real life has been a bitch and I just couldn't find the time nor the will to write. Have no fears, though. I've already got the next chapter mostly planned out and I most definately want to get this baby going again. I've actually got a plot bunny, so the story as a whole may get better.

Thanks to:

Giuli Miadi Black (I'll try to squeeze another lemon in here sometime), magicaltears, I-LoveTrunks1 (I would love to write DBZ, but I just don't know enough about the show to be messing around with it. I am so checking out your faves list. :) ), Serious Fan, Mr. Rainbows (Don't I know it! And yet, I'm so happy when the school year starts. Odd one, I am. hehe), smittyloveshpfic, xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Pixy Black, VadMustang, RL4SBnotNT, picky and paranoid, riseofafallenangel (You'll have to use your imagination. I'm sure you can think of something. lol), HarrylovesDraco, Inky74 (I know. I'm actually hoping to bring some major plot into this story. I have a few ideas, but suggestions are always welcome!), SharinganWielder, Tren Rogue.

* * *

Regulus took a deep breath, staring at the entrance of Gringotts. He didn't want to do this. Wasn't it bad enough he had to wake up every morning knowing that Severus was dead? Why would Severus put him through this? No amount of money or potions ingredients Sev could have left him would be worth listening to his best friend's will reading.

Steeling his nerves, Regulus walked through the bronze and silver doors, nodding politely at the goblins, and forced himself to walk to the nearest open teller. The goblin ignored him in favor of counting a pile of galleons. Regulus cleared his throat and earned a sneer for his efforts.

"Forgive me for interrupting, but I was wondering if you could tell me where Severus Snape's will reading is to be held."

"Do you have your letter of invitation?"

"Yes," Regulus placed the slightly tear stained letter from his robes. The goblin peered at it closely before handing it back and calling for another goblin.

"Griphook will show you the way."

"Thank you."

Griphook passed by the carts, leading him to a door at the far end of the hall.

"The reading is scheduled to begin in half an hour, Mr. Black."

"Thank you, Griphook."

The goblin gave a small bow and left Regulus to his thoughts. The youngest Black stood staring at the doors, desperately wishing he had let Remus come with him. He didn't think he could do this, walk through those doors and listen to whatever it was Severus wanted him to hear. It wasn't fair, damn it!

The doors in front of him creaked open and Minerva McGonagall gently took his hand to lead him into the room. As soon as he was seated, Dumbledore took his other hand and squeezed it gently. Regulus wanted to bolt; he couldn't deal with another twenty minutes of this silent pity! He looked up when Albus squeezed a little harder and gestured to a goblin with his free hand.

"Regulus, this is Bogrod. He is in charge if the reading."

The goblin nodded and Regulus returned the gesture, though his was a bit shakier.

"Since everyone has arrived, I see no reason to delay the reading." Bogrod unrolled a scroll and cleared his throat.

"_I, Severus Salazar Snape, of sound mind and body, do hereby bequeath my worldly possessions as follows:_

_To Minerva McGonagall and Albus Dumbledore I do hereby leave my mother's vast library of Transfiguration texts, __may they be more useful to you than they were to me._

_To Filius Flitwick I do hereby leave my mother's Charms texts and my handcrafted chess set. Hopefully you will one day learn how to play without resorting to color changing charms._

_To Regulus Black I do hereby leave everything else in my possession; my vaults, properties, potions supplies, recipes, research, books, odds and ends, and anything else he wishes to keep. _

_This is my will. So mote it be._"

Familiar magic swirled around them, the last bit of magic Severus Snape would ever do.

Regulus could not help it, he wept.

Minerva immediately made to lead him from the room, but Bogrod stopped her.

"Mr. Snape left a letter for you, Mr. Black. He asked that you read it here, alone, so that you may make the appropriate arrangements."

Regulus cried harder.


	23. Chapter 23

This and the next chapter were going to be together, but I liked where this ended. I'm sure you will be able to figure out what will be next, but then it'll be back to James and Sirius. I promise!

Thanks to:

Dark Angel's Blue Fire  
and  
Giuli Miadi Black

* * *

Bogrod waited until the others had left to hand over the letter. Regulus wiped his eyes and took the envelope with shaking hands. Severus's handwriting glared at him from the letter, the carelessly precise letters twirling together to form his name. The lump in his throat grew bigger. Almost as big as the lump of wax Severus had used to seal the letter. Giggling in near hysteria at the old joke, Reg broke the seal and unfolded the paper.

_Regulus,_

_Stop that incessant crying right this instant. You sound like a first year Hufflepuff._

_As to the reason for this letter, I have both a gift and a request. _

_I have been working on a potion at the Dark "Tosser's" request for quite some time now.  
He wished for a potion that would allow Fenrir Greyback the ability to retain his human thoughts  
and have control over the wolf. Apparently the mangy mutt is even more viscious as a human.  
Although he has never learned of any success, I have managed to brew what he wanted.  
My gift to you, Regulus, is the recipe for the Wolfsbane Potion. Consider this my blessing of your marriage._

_While testing this potion, Greyback decided to infect someone and let me use him as  
a second guinea pig in human trials. With a bit of Polyjuice, I managed to fool him into  
believing the boy had died. Sebastian has been in my care for a few weeks now. He is at  
my, now your, cabin. You do remember the one, correct? There is no telling how consorting  
with so many Gryffindors has affected your brain. I ask that you take Sebastian. You must  
do so immediately upon finishing this letter. I have left him in Kent's care. Save him before that  
blasted house elf has stuffed him with too much chocolate._

_You will find the Wolfsbane recipe under a loose floorboard in the cupbord under the stairs._

_I am sorry I cannot keep my promise, but rest assured I will be there, one way or another,  
when you need me to be._

_Always,_

_Severus_


	24. Chapter 24

Look! It only took me two months to update this time! *sees the readers are still not pleased* Err...hehehe *gulp*

Thanks to:

I-Love-Trunks1 (Sebastian is the boy that Severus convinced Greyback had died after being bitten), Dark Angel's Blue Fire, Pixy Black, riseofafallenangel (Severus' snark in the opening bit of his letter was my favorite part), xxxxParvati-Patilxxxx, picky and paranoid, ladyBlue Wolf, moonfoot13, Allie-grrl4

* * *

Regulus stood to leave. "I...I need my husband."

"You will find a fireplace two doors down. Tell the guard I sent you and, if you decide to follow Mr. Snape's wishes, you are to be allowed back to finalize the custody papers and transfer his vaults to your name."

Nodding absently, Regulus left.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place?" Remus stared at the rundown shack. The walls were covered in ivy and the roof looked as though it would cave at any minute.

Regulus nodded. "Yeah. Sev...Sev used this place to do most of his research. He never told anyone else where it was, so he would be left alone to brew to his heart's content." He started up the path, leaving his husband with no choice but to follow. "I used to floo in from time to time and make sure he was eating."

When they reached the porch, the door opened and a house elf bounced out to meet them.

"Master Regulus! I is not expecting company."

Regulus smiled sadly. "I'm afraid I haven't come just to visit, Kent. Severus..." he trailed off, not sure he could handle having to tell Kent of his master's death. A warm hand pushed against his lower back.

"I'll tell him, love. Go find Sebastian."

* * *

Regulus walked the length of the hallway, letting his fingers trail against the wall. Severus had never been one for decoration, so the lack of photos made him grin. The house was undeniably Severus's. The door to the guest room, where he assumed Sebastian had taken up residence, was just in front of him. How was he going to tell this little boy that his hero was gone?

Gathering every ounce of courage he had in him, Regulus opened the door and peered into the room.

A little boy, no older than seven, sat in a chair near the window, doodling on a piece of parchment.

He hummed a happy little tune, swinging his legs back and forth. Sebastian had an all too familiar scar on his left arm, one that Regulus had seen on Remus' side. To be bitten so young…

Shaking his head, Regulus cleared his throat. Startled, Sebastian knocked over his inkpot trying to turn around. Reg walked over to the tiny desk and vanished the ink with small smile. The boy looked amazed.

"It's you!"

Shocked, Regulus asked, "Do you know who I am?"

"You're the angel! Mister Severus said if anything bad ever happened to him an angel would come for me! He showed me your picture in his…" Sebastian trailed off. "Where's Mister Severus?"

Regulus dropped to his knees, meeting the boy's scared eyes. "Sebastian, Severus was in a…he was attacked by a very bad man. He had to go away."

"Is he sick? Will he come back?"

"No. He can't come back."

"But…but"

"Hush now." Regulus pulled the crying child into a hug. "Everything is going to be okay. Severus sent me here to take care of you. You get to come live with me and Remus. You'll get to meet my brother and James and Harry. Harry's three. I'm sure you can find all kinds of mischief to get into together."

Regulus rocked the poor child back and forth, trying to smile gratefully through his own tears when Kent and Remus came to pack up Sebastian's things.

"Let's get you home."


End file.
